Dark Romances
by The Amazing Shrinking Violet
Summary: AU When Starfire refuses to give her boyfriend Robin what he needs, he goes off and finds it somewhere else... RobinxRaven please R


Disclaimer: I don't own any of these characters, and I most likely never will. Any bad jokes I blame on my friend JB. Seriously. He was a big help during all this. And I'm using who I think Robin could be for this one, and decided to use Tim Drake, since Dick Grayson was used in my other AU piece.

………………………………….

Young love is considered to be blind at times, but the age old question (well, maybe not that age old…) is how long will that love last? This was being discussed, some what loudly, between the young couple in question.

"Tim... perhaps we should wait..."

"Wait? Kori, we've been waiting for 3 years!"

"... has it been that long?"

" . . . "

The dark-haired young man slapped his forehead, groaning in disgust for a moment, before looking at the beautiful redhead with those soft green eyes that always used to make his heart melt. Not today though – today he was feeling incredibly annoyed with her, a sentiment that had been growing in intensity ever since the second year of their relationship, and frankly, it was getting really annoying.

"Honestly, sometimes you make me want to scream…" he sighed, looking down at his hands for a moment, before standing up and looking out a window. The girl gave him a sad look, but said nothing, just looking down at the floor.

"I just do not want to rush into things…you know that…."

He sighed. "Yeah, I do know…you fully explained it to me once or twice before…" he said sourly, leaning against the window and looking down at the large, looping driveway below, leading up to the manor proper and the gate. "I just sometimes think that maybe…we're not meant to be, you know?"

Kori jumped up then, shaking her head furiously. "No no no...you must not talk like that! Of course we were meant to be together!" She rushed forward and grabbed him from behind, squeezing him tight enough to make him choke and go red in the face. "I am just….a little afraid that after…you will not like me anymore…"

Tim smiled weakly, shaking his head a little. "Now that's just silly…" he said, reaching back and putting a hand on her shoulder. She smiled a little, and leaned her head down a little, brushing her chin over his hand.

"Thank you…"

"For what?"

"For listening…."

"Oh…no problem."

………………………………………………….

He watched her leave from the same window, her car driving down the long road, then vanishing when it passed the trees and headed onto the main thoroughfare. He sighed, then went to sit down in an armchair, crossing his arms over his chest as he slouched down. He stayed there for several minutes, until it was a half-hour later, and he heard a throat clearing behind him. He turned his head, and saw the balding, grey-haired butler standing next to the chair, a thin-lipped smile on his face.

"Master Timothy, Master Bruce requires your presence in the library…"

"Coming, Alfred…"

About two minutes later, Tim entered the library, and looked around for Bruce, his adoptive father/guardian. No sign of him, which wasn't really all that surprising. Bruce had a tendency to be a bit of a flake, and disappear at the oddest times. Then he felt a hand on his shoulder, and he jumped a little, startled. He turned around, heart pounding in his chest, and glared angrily at the older man behind him. Bruce had short dark hair, bordering on a crew cut almost, and a squared jaw, and was usually wearing something stylish and befitting of a man of his wealth. He was also unusually sneaking and stealthy when he wanted to be, which was how he avoided being in a serious relationship for so long. Tim, of course, found his habit of sneaking up on people to be exceptionally obnoxious.

"What is it this time, Bruce?" He sighed a little, looking irritated. The older man blinked his dark eyes once, then smiled some.

"Well, to be perfectly honest…a friend of yours called."

Tim sighed, knowing what was coming next. Most of his friends were students at a very exclusive private school, but one of them in particular had a bad reputation, and another was a bit of an addict. Bruce could never understand why his protégé of sorts hung around with such people, but there wasn't really all that much he could do; besides, he himself had friends who had similar problems…just not as badly as the teens, since they were older and a bit smarter…though not by much.

"Who was it?"

"Young Garfield Logan, I believe…" Bruce said, rubbing his chin slowly, looking a little distant and cold for a moment. "The rumored addict, isn't he?"

"Yeah, that's what they say…" Tim nodded a little, trying not to say anything that would confirm the older man's suspicions. When he wanted to, Bruce could be a real hard-headed man, and a stern taskmaster, something not many people gave him credit for, considering his jet-setting millionaire playboy image.

"He wanted to talk to you about something…personal. And I also heard from Alfred that Miss Anders was here as well…."

"Uh…yeah, she was…."

"Tim…have you been getting into…'trouble'?" Bruce was acting more fatherly today than ever, despite the fact that his father figure was the same butler who was attempting to inconspicuously dust some books in a shelf not too far away from the others.

"What kind of 'trouble' do you mean, Bruce?"

"You know…the kind that involves girls…" the older man blinked, almost stupidly. Tim laughed, his face going red for a moment.

"God no, Bruce…Kori's still not wanting to even talk about...that…and hasn't for 3 years."

"Good…I'd hate to think I'd need to remove you from that school…"

Tim groaned; again it came down to the same thing again – taking him out of Brentwood and putting him in a public institution. He couldn't imagine anything more boring than that, considering every one of his friends was one of the social elite…and everyone else didn't really matter past that.

"Bruce, please….don't start this again."

"Just…keep up your studies, and be careful, okay? Don't do anything I wouldn't do…." That last part was really funny, coming from Bruce Wayne. It was also a bit of a _carte blanche_ to do whatever he wanted to do. At least until Bruce revised his statement. But he never did, much to the boy's relief.

"Oh…he said he was going to call back…the Logan boy, I mean…something about coming over to get you for a 'night on the town with the boys'…"

Tim smiled a little to himself, and nodded. "Is that…all?"

"Yes…for now, anyways…" Bruce sighed, and went to retrieve a book from the shelf, the same one he read whenever he was worried about Tim. It was one a friend of his recommended…Old Yeller. He chuckled softly. "John, you're far too sentimental…" he commented aloud as Tim left the room.

…………………………………………….

The phone rang in his bedroom, and he rushed up the stairs to answer it. It was about to stop ringing when he ran into the room and jumped for receiver, falling down onto the floor and grumbling. There was a muffled sound, like someone talking, and he fixed it properly.

"Yo?"

"Dude…What's up?" The voice on the other end sounded a little too carefree, and a bit fuzzy. _'He's probably been eating the cotton candy again, the goon.' _

"Not much…you?"

"'Bout the same."

"So what's up for tonight?"

"Well, Vic thought we should go cruisin', maybe stop by a few places, get some 'stuff'…." The boy went on, rambling endlessly, except when his friend cut him off.

"Gar…calm down man…you're doing that annoying thing again…"

"Right, sorry…."

"Same time?"

"Same time."

"Cool…" he hung up the phone, as that was his custom, and grabbed a jacket from a pile of clothes he had in the corner, and headed out into the hall, and down the stairs to the main door. "I'm going out!" he called, eyes on Alfred, who was now dusting the vases.

"Yes, sir."

……………………………………….

He waited patiently outside the gate, leaning against the hard and cold metal bars, until a tricked out custom car pulled up, the driver a large African-American youth with a bald head, and a pair of shades that acted as perfect mirrors. The side door opened, and Tim got in, closing it after he slipped his legs inside. "Hey guys…"

"'s up?" the large teen went, nodding a little. The teen in the back was white, bordering on a rather odd skin color, and had dyed dark green hair. His eyes were bloodshot, and the right one occasionally twitched.

"Vic, Gar….I was waiting for like, ten minutes…do you have any idea how damn cold it is?" Tim crossed his arms over his chest, frowning darkly. Vic, the large teen, shrugged with one shoulder.

"Eh…Dopey here had to go pick something up, AGAIN."

"Gar, what is it with you and your shopping binges?"

"Eh...you know me…I like…stuff."

Vic snorted. "Like that nasty old tofu…"

Gar snorted a little. "Come on man, I don't ride your back about all those ribs you whack down into you, so don't get on my case about health foods…"

Tim sighed, and gave them both the evil eye. "Let's just go before Bruce decides to see what we're up to…"

"Sorry man…"

At that, the car went in reverse, turning around and then went back down the road, and into the city.

……………………………..

"So she shot you down again, huh?" Vic snorted, shaking his head with amusement. Gar was giggling like an idiot, and starting to get on Tim's last nerve.

"Yeah…you ask why?"

"Well, I got in touch with…some people…and I think I found a solution for you…but it does involve you doing something dishonest…"

"Like what?"

"You'll see…"

Tim just sighed, and slouched down in the seat, his seatbelt riding up along his chest for a moment.

After a few minutes, the car pulled over near what looked like a high-end club, the kind that only the elite could get into. Fortunately, these three were just that, and could get instant access…especially since Tim was loaded twice over everyone else in town.

They were ushered in, and then lead to a back room. All the secrecy was working itself on Tim's nerves, worrying the hell out of him.

"Chill, dude…If Vic says it's cool, then it's cool…" Gar nudged his friend, doing little to assuage his fears.

Finally, the three were sat down at a table in a room high above the dance floor, and waited.

"So…what's this about, anyways?" Tim finally asked, looking around and admiring the richness of the room, which looked a lot like some kind of office, and the table they were sitting at looked a lot like a conference table.

"Well, this is all about your little...'love problem….'"

"Say what!"

Then the door across from the table opened, and a man stepped in, along with two smaller forms. The man was wearing a black leather fur coat, and wore a dark shirt and pants, and heavy boots. When he walked into the light, the boys could see that he was also wearing a mask, the left side of the mask orange, with an exposed eye, the other side a dark blue, bordering on black, with two long bands that came from the back. He sat down at the table, placing his light grey-gloved hands on the table, and waited until the other two were closer.

The first form was a grey skinned girl with bright pink hair that stood up in two directions, with large pink cat eyes, and wearing a pink leather halter top, and a pair of dark purple leather pants with pink stripes. The outfit was meant to show off her body, but tastefully, and that's what it did. The other form was also a grey skinned girl, this one with short shoulder length purple hair and violet eyes, and a chakra on her forehead. She was wearing a black leather halter, blue wristbands with a large gem-like stone on each one, and a pair of tight leather pants. She was more curved than the other girl, and for a moment, Tim almost drooled visibly.

"So…I hear that your little friend needs some…help…." The man spoke in a soft but cold voice, sounding both amused and sadistic, at the same time. All Vic and Gar could do was nod. "Good….then we can do business, if he's who you say he is, my…friends…" he smiled, the mask curving a little, his one exposed eye unnerving the trio.


End file.
